March 13, Pozirk. France has denied asylum to exiled Belarusian performance artist Alaksiej Kuźmič, who was evacuated from Belarus in a major rescue operation but has been detained at least twice in France for his provocative performances.
Kuźmič posted the official refusal on Facebook, citing Part 1 of Article L.511-7 as the grounds — “a serious threat to the security of the state.”
French police arrested Kuźmič in July 2024 for digging near van Gogh’s grave in Auvers-sur-Oise. A judge sent him to a detention center for foreigners. He spent nearly a month in detention, including two weeks on a hunger strike.
A French court ordered him to leave the country, but another court overturned the ruling in August.
After his release, he painted testicles beneath the Colonne Vendôme in Paris in September, describing the work as “Conception.” He was arrested two days later and charged with vandalizing a French architectural monument.
He was released on October 1.
Kuźmič, the son of famous artist Alaksiej Kuźmič, was already known for provocative performances in Belarus, including a 2019 naked protest against censorship.
